The present invention relates to movable room divider panels, and in particular to a wiring arrangement therefor.
Freestanding, movable room divider panels are commonly used in offices and other areas to partition a large open space into a plurality of separate work stations. Because the panels are movable, they may be disassembled and rearranged to accommodate a wide variety of different working requirements.
One problem encountered with movable partition systems is the difficulty involved in economically and safely providing electricity to those work stations which require electrical power. Local building codes and utility inspectors typically do not permit users to run long length of electrical extension cords along the panels. Under such circumstances, the panels must be hard wired by hand, similar to conventional household wiring which is permanent, wherein flexible wires are threaded through the walls of the building and connected with switches, duplex outlets, and other electrical appliances and fixtures, by means of solder and tape joints, and/or solderless connectors with the joint located in an enclosed, rigid junction box. All exposed segments of the wire which extend along the outside of the building wall must be encased in a protective shield or conduit.
In movable partition systems, the wiring is preferably run continuous from one panel to the next. Even in those partition systems which include some type of wiring raceway attached thereto, the legs of the partition panels typically extend into or through the raceway, thereby destroying the protective integrity of the raceway for purposes of compliance with electrical code requirements. Further, that portion of the wiring which extends between adjacent panels must, under the above noted strict building codes, be fully shielded. Although both flexible and rigid conduit can be used with standard junction boxes to electrify the partition panels, it is very difficult to run the conduit through or along the panels in a neat, clean-cut manner without damaging the structural integrity of the panels. It is particularly difficult, if not impossible, to run fairly large conduit, such as one-half inch diameter conduit, through or around the vertical support posts and/or foot portions of freestanding partitions of the type having a supporting leg depending from the partition bottom edge at each end of the panel.